Chapter 196: The Knight Rides the Autumn (2)

“The marquis allowed me to use Tristan as surname, but I don’t think that’s the right thing for me to do, you know? I understand that I’m his adopted daughter, but I don’t share any blood with him. He gave me a place to sleep and provided for my convenience, it’d be a little too much if I were to use his surname too, no? So I chose to receive a different one instead. Originally, I’d need to be knighted to get it, but the marquis pulled some strings to make an exception for me. Oh, of course, he also gave me conditions. If I fail to be knighted, he said he’s gonna confiscate the surname I received and I’d have to use Tristan’s surname instead. It was such a strange condition, but it was good for me, don’t you think? Hehe.”

Levy chirped away like a sparrow in the morning. Judging from the fact that she was talking more than usual, it was obvious to see that she was excited.

Then again, for the first time in her life, she received her own surname to prove herself. All her life, she was forced to act for others, so this was undoubtedly a happy occasion for her.

That was why Lee Han just nodded his head as he silently listened to her words. He was also happy for her.

However…

“But, why Jeanne d’Arc when there are so many other surnames…?”

“…It’s a bit of an unusual name, isn’t it? Does it not suit me?”

“No! I didn’t mean it like that! It’s a wonderful name!”

Seeing the girl’s pitiful reaction, Lee Han quickly shook his head. He tried to hide his anxiety as much as possible and praised her new surname.

“Thank goodness. I thought you found it strange…”

After that, her bright smile came back. His compliments worked.

Then…

“That name just suddenly came to mind! You see, just a while ago, I accidentally got burned a little when I was trying to blow out a candle, and at that moment, the name just came to my mind! It felt like I was receiving a ‘revelation from Avalon’…”

“…”

Levy told the story behind her reason for choosing that name as she recalled that fateful moment. To her, it was almost a miraculous moment.

“This is probably what they called inspiration that flashes through one’s subconscious! There are just so many strange things in the world, aren’t there?”

“Yeah…”

“Anyway, from now on, please call me Levy Jeanne d’Arc… Although, you can call me either Levy, or Jeanne, Master!”

“You know what people are gonna think of me if I called you those, and you still asked me to do that?”

“Hm? Do I?”

“…I know you know. You’re just playing dumb. Don’t do that, it’s obvious when you do it.”

“…Hehe.”

Levy let out an awkward smile, as Lee Han also laughed along with her, feeling proud of his playful and charming student. However, at the same time, his heart was ridden with anxiety.

I got a bad feeling about this…

The fact that the name flashed in her mind when her hand almost got burned by a candle only made him even more anxious.

Why fire of all things…?

That question came to him naturally.

‘Hey, is this a coincidence?’

‘Uh, it must be? Maybe?’

‘Why are you so unsure!?’

‘…Because I don’t know! Maybe it’s that? You know, the reversibility of fate?”

‘H-Hey! Watch your mouth!’

‘Heup!’

Lee Han wasn’t someone who believed in superstitions, but this world was a place where Fairies and Mystics coexisted with humans.

If he said something wrong, it could very well become a seed.

She hasn’t learned Divine Technique, but she has the talent to be called a Saintess the moment she learns it…

Hmm…

It feels as if she exists to fuck over the temple.

She was bound to ruin the temple’s plans the moment she got caught, and her life of walking on a flower field would surely become difficult the moment she got involved with the temple.

…Our Female Bear… You are really…

Your teacher really hopes that you really chose that name by accident…

Boom-!

Lee Han contacted the guy less than 5 minutes ago, and the moment he appeared, he just smashed down the restaurant door without hesitation whatsoever.

Seeing the black-haired prince who had forgotten to control his strength slammed the door so hard to the point it broke down made the restaurant owner scream in panic.

“Y-You! How could you crush our Maple Tree Restaurant’s door, which has a 200-year old tradition like that—!”

“I’m sorry, I’ll compensate you.”

“That’s not what’s important right now! You—!”

Thud-!

“…”

Then, a bag of gold coins fell onto the table. The loud thud as it hit the table made people wonder just how heavy it was to make such a sound.

“Keuheum!”

However, the restaurant owner still had his pride. Although he was surprised, he still had no intention of forgiving the guy. If anything, he was pissed at the guy’s attitude of trying to solve such a disrespect with money.

As he resolved himself to solve the guy no matter—

Thud-!

Thud-!

“From today onwards, you own this restaurant! Do as you please!”

“I have no intention of becoming the owner. All I want is for the surroundings to be a little quieter.”

“From ants to rats, I’ll chase away everything for you, Dear Sir!”

Indeed, only fools who thought that money wasn’t worth anything would refuse this amount of gold coins.

Bags that seemed twice as heavy as the first one came out one after another as if they were going to break the table. Seeing that, the restaurant owner forgot his desire to teach the black-haired prince, Roen, a lesson, and pledged his loyalty to him instead.

This happened in an instant.

Those who watched it couldn’t help but think of how absurd it was.

“What? You have that much money lying around?”

“I do. Only Galahad or the temple has as much money as me.”

“…So you do have that much money lying around, huh?”

“If you want to, I can show you a real diamond rain.”

“…No, I have to refuse that.”

For the first time, Lee Han felt the dignity of a regressor in the boy. The boy never really surprised him before, but that changed when he smelled the limitless scent of gold emanating from him.

As expected of a regressor.

The invincible investor who knew all the real estate that’d rise in value, future successful business to invest in, and where precious sources of wealth like gold mines were. This made Lee Han think that investment was a key to success in this barbaric medieval world, just like in his previous life.

Once again, Lee Han felt amazed at him.

However, Roen just expressionlessly stared at him, unfazed. As if such money was just a small change to him.

Although, his pupils were shaking like crazy.

It was obvious how tense he was, and there was a sense of urgency in his movements.

“Jeanne—No, is it true that Miss Levy has assumed the surname of Jeanne d’Arc?”

“Yes. Just ask the person in question if you’re curious. She just left, so you should be able to catch up to her.”

“…No. You have no reason to lie to me about this, Instructor, I’ll take your words for it.”

Though he said that, it was clear that he wanted to chase after her right now. It was clear that even he was feeling anxious about this development. To him, it probably felt like his old comrade who had died suddenly came back to life.

And also…

He’s suspicious of her.

The boy thought that maybe, just like him, Levy had come back from the future.

Doubt, joy, sadness, anger, despair, denial.

…Countless emotions quickly passed through his face.

But, in the end, what Lee Han saw was…

He gave up thinking in that direction.

As expected from a smart guy. He came to a conclusion quickly.

After all, if Female Bear really came from the future, she’d have contacted him right away, but she didn’t. She also didn’t show any signs of it, so he probably concluded that this was all just a giant coincidence.

But of course, he couldn’t treat it as a ‘mere’ coincidence.

“Instructor, by any chance…”

“…Why did you stop talking?”

“…I can’t just say it out loud… It’s not something that can easily be said…”

“…”

But, the guy still didn’t open his mouth easily, so Lee Han just stared at him silently.

Slurp-!

The instructor leisurely waited for him to finish contemplating while consuming the waffles and coffee the restaurant owner brought out in a good mood.

For some reason though, the instructor looked rather calm.

He doesn’t seem to be frustrated…

“…It’s rare that you aren’t complaining at me.”

“Because I know I won’t get an answer out of you even if I do. If you want to say something, you’ll say it without me asking you to first. Anyway, if it’s something you don’t want to tell me, or find it difficult to talk about, then don’t tell me. I can tell you’re living a hard life.”

“…Haha.”

Roen laughed for a moment.

After all, he was sure that his instructor was probably the only person in the kingdom who would evaluate him like that.

Considering that he was the only person who made his difficult struggles easier.

That was probably why…

“Whew!”

After letting out a much more relieved breath, he decided to reveal one of his most important secrets.

There was only one reason why he revealed this secret.

It was so that their conversation could go much smoother.

“Would you believe me if I told you that I have the ‘ability to see the future,’ Instructor?”

Of course, he wouldn’t reveal everything. He’d mix 70% truth with 30% lies.

Since he didn’t really lie, Roen was already preparing himself for his response, anticipating how he would react.

He probably won’t believe it right away, but if we keep talking…

“You are telling me that now?”

“?”

“How am I supposed to react to that after all that happened, you brat?”

“??”

However, his reaction was completely different from what he had expected.

If he hadn’t seen it wrong, he made a face as if he found him ridiculous.

But, the moment he started speaking, Roen finally understood why he reacted that way.

“You never even hid the fact that you know the future. How am I supposed to react when you tell me that you actually can? Should I be surprised?”

“…Was I really being that obvious?”

“I knew you were telling me all that on purpose.”

“A-Ahem.”

“I swear, you’re the clumsiest guy I’ve seen. If you had the slightest intention of hiding it, I definitely wouldn’t find out, but you always come up in the rumors of the neighborhood.”

“I-I was never in the—”

“Oh, really?”

“…”

…Roen couldn’t do anything but shut his mouth tight even when he heard the instructor laughing mockingly at him.

Maybe if he just stayed still, he could still get somewhere in the middle, but that wasn’t why he decided to stop making excuses. He just thought it was the better course of action and let out a bitter laugh.

Although, through that bitter laugh, there was this refreshing feeling on the corner of his lips. It was as if all of his built-up frustration had been released somehow.

I didn’t expect that…

Lee Han responded to the guy’s revelation with sharp words as if he was scolding him, but he was actually secretly surprised by this development. After all, it was the first time that the guy, which was like a wounded stray cat that would trust no one, had shown such trust in him.

…He even felt a little affectionate towards him because the guy gave off the vibe of a stray cat that finally allowed him to touch it for the first time.

…If I say that out loud to him, he’s probably gonna get mad at me…

Regardless, he was satisfied that they had grown closer, and he wanted to avoid touching his sore spot for no reason, at least for now.

And so…

“Do you have something you are curious about?”

“?”

“Aren’t you curious? Like, why did I call you as soon as I heard Female Bear’s new name?”

“…”

He asked that, and he could see the guy’s expression hardened at that question.

Then, the guy…

“…I’ve been a little suspicious for a while now, but now I’m certain. You’re similar to me.”

“Ahaha…”

Directed his gaze towards the status window guy.

Seeing him immediately figure out who the source of the information was, Lee Han praised his good instincts.

At that moment…

“…Let me ask you one thing first. Did you also meet an [Angel]?”

“C-Could it be, you also met one, Young Master?”

“As expected.”

“Wow…”

…That information came out of nowhere, and Lee Han could only blink.

After that, it felt that the two of them suddenly got closer, as if they were friends that used to attend the same school.

But, when he looked at the status window guy, Lee Han couldn’t help but feel confused.

This guy didn’t get sent here by a truck?

He had been guessing if the guy had been hit by a Dodge or a Retona, but…

…Are trucks not the trend anymore these days?

At this revelation, he felt lost and lonely. Apparently, ever since he got reincarnated, the trend had shifted into something else.

…Back in my days, it was either trucks or death from overwork…

These youngsters are getting it easier these days, huh…?

Angels, huh?

Actually, if things get developed in this way…

Someone might just get reincarnated the moment they write a comment on something, haha!

Lee Han laughed inside, thinking that it was really ridiculous.